For now, Maui’s great tourism reset is leaving no one fully satisfied. Visitors feel pushed away. Residents feel priced out. And the hard truth is, both might be right.
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165 thoughts on “Maui Tourism Crisis Exposes Hawaii’s Brutal Catch-22”
We have enjoyed Maui and Hawaii for over twenty five years and fifteen mostly care free respectful visits. The tourism friendly vibe has vanished. We spent many thousands of dollars on legal condo lodging and scuba diving as well as all the other things seasoned visitors do on Maui. Taxes and fees are going to kill off the business model soon. The attitude towards
Maui is struggling with incredibly high prices,a drought,a severely limited number restaurants,trash and weeds everywhere and a service staff that on occasion seem to have a chip on their shoulders.
Include a canceled golf tournament,a canceled basketball tournament,a real estate market that is in complete turmoil and a County Council that seems determined to have forget that Lahaina was the draw.
In my view Maui has and could never look worse and I bring a 40 year perspective.
Good luck Maui!
Was aghast to see how many condos have been built on Maui since I was there before covid. It is no wonder that many locals want their island back. All those rentals but no affordable housing for the locals, sad.
There has not been an STR built on Maui since 1989 (other than hotels, that is, which are technically STRs).
If you saw rentals being built, they were long-term rental apartments.
If you saw other types of condos being built, they are only allowed to be occupied by those who own them.
None of those new condos are short term rentals. New construction is almost exclusively apartments or condos for owner occupants or long term rental. The County has so many rules and requirements that by the time the construction is done, no one local can afford it. Lack of housing is a County politician created problem and their solution is to gut the only industry that employs people on the island so even less locals can earn a living.
Our 50th wedding anniversary is in 2 years. What’s the smoothest way
to plan for a Kauai “honeymoon”? We’re older, of course, so we won’t be trying to cram it all in.
Thankyou.
I own a condo at the Maui Sunset that is a short term rental unit. We have decided that if this bill goes ahead and bans our ability to rent it out, it will just sit empty until we are able to use it. It is oceanfront, and we would never sell it for ‘cheap’. It wouldn’t be an affordable housing for long term renters as they wouldn’t be able to afford it and I don’t plan on just going there to fix it after they have lived in it for months. It won’t sell, won’t bring in anyGE or TA or MCTAT tax dollars that it currently produces and Kihei businesses that depend on the tourists will go broke. You can’t force people to sell their property for less than it is worth so it will sit empty. This is the stand many owners are taking. Some of us can afford to have them sit empty and will do it until Maui state out of desperation for tourist dollars decides to reverse it. It will become the next Haiti!
Remember when Henry Ford Said, “Folks can have any color car they want as long as it’s black.”
As Chrysler proved, along with General Motors…he was wrong.
The idea that eliminating competition like STVR’s is the magic elixir to solve Maui’s visitor problem is an unworkable nightmare.
One size, one color, or one choice is not America. It is third-world thinking with third-world results.
Millions of visitors have come to Maui because of free choice.
Many of these millions have chosen STVR’s because that is how they wished to enjoy Paradise with family and friends.
Cut them off if you wish Mr. Mayor and you might as well resign.
The tens of thousands of workers who depend on STVR’s for cleaning, repair services, yard maintenance and pool care will immediately be jobless.
Just how are these individuals now suddenly able to purchase a vacant STVR home without a job?
Reality tells us the Lahaina fires devasted Maui tourism. Nothing else.
We love Maui and have been 14 times, but we will probably never visit again. Everyone else has summarized it well so I don’t have anything to add to that, except…
We carefully tried to honor and fit in. Picking trash up off the beach, leaving extra generous tips, enjoying the people we met and trying to leave Maui and little better than we found it.
Now we feel like unwanted outcasts. Well, we’ll have the memories.
Let’s be clear here ,very ,
Lahaina was centered around tourism period.
So no amount of arguing either way will change that now or in future .And many of these locals simply want free handouts and poor poor me for the rest of their life’s
I know many businesses who like my family lost everything .But at some point you get on with it .
Many fellow owners and home owners are throwing in the towel saying it’s over we are leaving for good. Why is that being suppressed by the media? I have no doubt Bissen relayed that message as he is dividing residents by controlling the narrative …sounds familiar .
In 100% agreement, David. I have only visited Hawaii half 10 times or so, but you are correct. I commend you “speaking to power”. The government is perpetuating, through their policies which promote socialism. And the people that vote them in don’t care as along as they get something from the public treasury. That, by the way, is what Alexander Tytler suggests was the 8th step in the 8 steps in a democracy’s demise. The media is simply complicit because they agree with the liberal policies there. I’m hopeful that Maui and Hawaii make it through this. I’m just doubtful, unless making it through it means that only the wealthy will be able to afford and visit. Won’t be anyone waiting on and cleaning up after them, however, as those jobs, except with more government handouts, won’t pay enough. So Green and everyone on down to each of the mayors will double down in this losing strategy. It was predictable and avoidable.
You are exactly right and I have posted this many times online. After 33 years of contributing businesses and a homeowner, am preparing in case I also need to throw in the towel. People say we voted the same politicians in. First off, we do not get much choice with who has been on the ballots. I still think re-count! I have looked for someone to recruit in running for office. Many of us did not vote for these … trying not to call names here. Any of us with half a brain and desire to work and not live on hand outs knows we need and welcome tourism. So many have left, I doubt we need as much housing as they say.
I love going to Kihei on Maui. Please do not destroy the paradise that is Maui to so many people.
It sounds like the State govt. and the Maui local govt. are not really interested in the welfare of Maui and its islanders.
Hawaii government needs to learn there are a lot of beautiful places in the world to travel. Hotels are already overpriced and many times when there is a financial problem hotel tax is increased. Imagine when you are staying in Maui a portion of the tax you pay on your hotel or rental goes toward mismanaged light rail on Oahu. Smarten up state government, your residents need the tourists and we need to take good care of them. The entire basis of your economy depends on it
I would not visit Maui. I love hawaii but why would you go to a place where they did not love you back? Plus you are spending a ton of money to support their economy. And why is it now us and them on this beautiful island. Aloha.